Girls Improving Resilience Through Livelihood and Health (GIRL-H) Program

The Girls Improving Resilience Through Livelihoods and Health (GIRL-H) program, implemented by Mercy Corps, aims to build the resilience of adolescent girls and young women in Haiti, Kenya, and Uganda. By improving well-being and strengthening access to pathways to formal education, economic opportunity, and civic engagement, Mercy Corps aims to ensure that adolescents and young people will have improved individual and household resilience. Spanning from 2021 through 2023, with a USD $10 million grant, Mercy Corps aims to reach 77,000 individuals in targeted areas in Haiti, Kenya, and Uganda in partnership with host country governments and local actors.  

Mercy Corps is currently adapting GIRL-H to local contexts in Haiti, Kenya, and Uganda. In partnership with Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Mercy Corps has tasked a cohort of Masters of Public Administration students to provide a technical review of the existing program in advancing a data-driven, needs-based, and sustainable approach to improve the resilience and self-sufficiency of adolescents and young people in Haiti, Kenya, and Uganda. Through a three-phase approach, the Capstone team conducted an academic and grey literature review, and conducted 19 focus group discussions and key informant interviews with Mercy Corp program staff, treatment and control groups of youth in Haiti, Kenya, and Uganda. Finally, in close collaboration with Mercy Corps, the team provided technical insights and recommendations to advance localization, adaptability of programming, and fidelity of implementation.